I am 63. With a new hip. This was a terrific hike and a wonderful challenge for me. I went with my 12 year old son. The rock scrambling was short but as challenging as I want. After the falls was more difficult than the first part of the loop. The descent after the second scramble was difficult but rewarding. There were several descents and climbs and wonderful views. My 12 year old seemed half mountain goat and loved it. He was tired as well. I am slow so it took 6.5 hours including a 45 minute lunch break at the base of the falls. We even out ran a thunder storm! A great day!

Love this trail!!! It is not very hard, but my boyfriend and I were hiking in the rain and some parts of the trail got very slippery. The rocks can get pretty polished so we need to be extra careful. The views are amazing and there are diverse landscapes and plantations.

Fantastic trail! I would not rate it as hard, but rather moderate. There are some parts that are more challenging, but I was expecting a lot worse from the other reviews. Most of the trail is on the cliff side, so if you’re afraid of heights, it might be a little nerve wracking but the views are incredible and totally worth the hike!

This was a fun and scenic trail. Hiking along Peters Kill was nice as was the falls. There still chunks of snow in places which was neat. The rock scramble was short but getting under those falls was absolutely worth it. Take the short junt down to Lake Awosting if you have the time as well. Our course was basically Mossly Glen to Blue Berry Run to Rainbow falls to a quick side trip to Lake Awosting and then the Carriage way home.

Accurately rated as moderate, but as much a fun challenge as a harder trail. We took the Mossy Glen to Blueberry run to Rainbow Falls, and added the .4 sidetrack to Lake Awosting, taking the carriage road back. Great views, the falls were beautiful, and albeit small, the scramble was fun. I'm a fan of longer and more difficult trails, but for a moderate it was definitely worth it. Water proof shoes a plus.

This place is absolutely beautiful! The falls we're nothing short of awesome. Very nice hike with lots of beautiful terrain. The trail follows the water and keeps switching back from from woods to water. A nice amount of rock scrambles which was very fun. Gorgeous views of Catskills. It was a nice surprise to see some snow and ice in some areas as well. All in all this was a mildly moderate hike full of a whole bunch of awesomeness!

There are a lot of amazing views on this hike as the trail hugs the edge of the cliff for a good portion. The elevation changes are spaced out well and strenuous at a few points. Overall, the payoff is definitely in the hikers' favor. Once the views are all thoroughly enjoyed, the return trip through the forest is also very nice. I did this hike with a good amount of snow on the ground, I imagine this will be much easier once the snow melts.

Hiked on 3/24/2018 - Trail conditions - packed snow all the way up. We started at 8am (25-30 degrees) so the snow was packed. Spikes all the way up.

Trail started off steep but eventually leveled off for about 1-1.5 miles. We reached few zigzags and it became steep for about a mile before the summit. About 5-6 times it felt like we were almost on summit, but it was a no go/false summit. West wings were strong and made it cold on this section. But the summit/terrace was blocked/calm.

Hike to Cornell was about 15-20 min. Cornell crack was full of snow and fun to climb up/down. There was no dangerous cliffs or ledges where it gets sketchy.

We didn't use snow shoes at all BUT on the way down the snow became slushy and soft. Some post holing.

Note: there is at least 3-4 feet of snow still on the mountain and valleys.

Summit view? One of the best in the Catskills. It was a clear and sunny day and it was simply amazing up there.

PS. The mountain will kick your butt. Not as "straight up" as the Whites but certainly as painful in the end.

Currently about 2 feet of snow on the nose trail. Hiked here through millbrook mountain from the west traps there was only a covering of snow everywhere else. But, once you hit the Gertrude’s nose trail it is rough if you’re not used to the snow. Still, beautiful views and an exhilarating hike although if not experienced I would say wait out the snow.

I would give this hike 5 stars if it wasn’t so busy. IT’S TOO CROWDED! (On Saturday morning we barely could find any parking in few miles radius) Views are amazing, but asian tourist groups blasting music trough speakers were ruining our experience. Dogs without leashes shouldn’t be allowed at this trail, but there there at least 3 dogs running freely. My advice would be DON’T GO THERE ON THE WEEKEND! (Unless you like crowds)

Always a favorite. Beautiful trail, so much variety. Had the falls all to ourselves. Will do this one over and over. I'd suggest getting to Minnewaska early - stupid kiosk installed to pay for parking which causes a long line of cars and longer to get in. Lots fill up fast!

Loved the trail. The mellow carriage road towards the end was just what we needed. The falls and surrounding ice was beautiful. Recommend using spikes of some sort as it was icy in some parts. Just a bit of reassurance on the slippery parts.

This was my first visit to Minnewaska. The hike was not strenuous, but was hindered a bit by a lot of ice. The ice added some challenge which I enjoyed. Rainbow Falls, frozen, is an amazing sight and the view of the Catskills is worth the trip.

Did this loop in late January 2018. Trail was pretty icy, I’d recommend bringing spikes. They’re not needed most of the time, but some sections were long stretches of thick ice over rock, particularly at the base of the falls. The trail was beautiful, with a number of vistas along the way and had a great mix of terrain for moderate hiking. Almost no people too, which was a bonus in this popular park. There were a few sections that really needed some maintenance, but I attribute that to the extreme winds we had a few weeks ago. This hike takes you past the bottom of the falls and then up and over them. Getting both perspectives was very nice. Would highly recommend this one.

I hiked this trail back in August with my brother and parents and was awesome! It had many great views and the overall experience was great. The trails were marked very clearly, weather conditions were perfect and bugs were not an issue.

Really nice trail for a short hike! If you have an hour or two I'd highly recommend you check it out. The scramble is challenging in parts, but definitely doable for anybody in decent physical shape, as long as you don't mind heights. Would probably be difficult for a dog, and may also be hard for a child - being tall definitely helps on this one! The rock scramble makes up a small portion of the hike, and the rest is a walk along carriage roads and footpaths. I went with a friend and we bought food with us to eat at the crag - it's a great picnic spot and on a clear day you get phenomenal views.